Mold Centering System With Recirculating Rollers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional mold centering systems face challenges in maintaining accurate alignment and reducing friction during mold closing and opening due to temperature variations and material hardness differences, leading to potential seizure issues and limited adjustment capabilities.
Innovation Solution
The proposed mold centering system employs a design with male and female devices featuring elongated shafts and through holes with parallel planes of revolving rollers in guiding housings, allowing for endless travel and rotation, which reduces friction and facilitates precise alignment and adjustment by tangential contact and recirculation of rollers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional steel male and female portions with diverse material hardness are used, then greater adjustment can be achieved, but friction increases leading to seizure problems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces graphite pads as a solid lubricant intermediary between the male and female steel portions. This mediator reduces direct metal-to-metal friction while maintaining the adjustment capability between the centering elements, thereby preventing seizure problems during mold closing and opening operations
2Reliability
If graphite pads are added as solid lubricant, then friction is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the friction parameter by introducing graphite pads with different material properties (low friction coefficient) between the contacting steel surfaces. This parameter change enables smooth relative motion while maintaining structural simplicity, as the graphite pads are integrated into the existing centering element design
3Stability of the object's composition
If temperature variations occur during working, then alignment accuracy deteriorates due to thermal expansion, but using rigid steel components maintains structural stability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent acknowledges thermal expansion effects in steel components during mold operation. By using graphite pads as a compliant lubricant layer, the system accommodates thermal dimensional changes while maintaining centering functionality, allowing the steel portions to expand/contract without compromising alignment accuracy
4Reliability
If roller cages with specific length are used to reduce friction, then adjustment length is limited, but friction reduction improves movement smoothness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the friction reduction function from the mechanical roller cage structure and replaces it with graphite pads that provide lubrication without imposing geometric constraints. This extraction allows unlimited adjustment length while maintaining smooth movement, as the graphite pads do not require a confined cage structure
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design ensures accurate 'zero point' positioning, reduces friction, and allows for limitless adjustment, preventing seizure problems and improving the fit between mold portions, thereby enhancing the mold closing and opening processes.
Implementation Method 1
a number of clusters of revolving bodies evolve with an endless travel. Said revolving bodies are coupled into guiding housings... The male device contacts said revolving bodies during the final run of the mold closing and also during the initial run of the opening thereof
Data Source
AI summary
It comprises several centering elements (1) arranged on the sides of a mold, wherein each one of them comprises a male device (3) screwed to a first portion (4) of the mold and a female device (6) screwed to a second portion (7) of the mold, being both portions (4-7) fastened to a fixed plate (8) and to a moveable plate (5) of an injection machine. It is characterised in that a through hole (11) of the female device (6) incorporates at least two parallel planes delimited by at least two groups of revolving bodies located in guiding housings, which have a closed contour, and through which the revolving bodies travel with an endless motion, in simultaneous combination with a spinning motion of said revolving bodies, while the elongated shafts (10) of the male device, move inside the through holes (11), said shafts contacting tangentially against some of the aforementioned revolving bodies.